The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1887-04-21
production followed quickly by a de-
crease and often serious injury to the
THE FARMERS FRUIT GARDEN.

.F Liz ldCU U1dO AOASSA
lived than men Of other occupations is
largely due to their life in the open
air. They ought to have fresher and
better supplies of vegetables and fruit
than any other class. It would be
money in their pocket in saving doctor
bills if they lived up to the advantages
they might easily enjoy in this respect.
If the farmer will get the trees and
protect them by fences his family will
generally see that they have the care
requisite to make them productive. A
good supply Of fruit Of various kinds
is the very best means of making home
and farm life attractive to the younger
members of the farmers family.
NOTICEABLE EFFECTS OF PHOSPHATE.
When some strips through a grain
field are left unfertilized with phos-
phate or other concentrated manure,
they often appear as if actually stunted
by the larger growth on either side.
This is often probably the fact. The
fertilizer in close contact with the seed
gives it such a vigorous start that its
roots encroach on the unmanured soil
from which they drain part of the too
scanty supply. The small amounts of
these concentrated fertilizers used
show that it does not need a great
quantity of manure to give a crop a
good send-off when it is applied in
contact with the seed. The same
amount of fertilizers spread over the
entire surface would make much less
show, though before the season was
over the roots might and probably
would reach most of it.
scABBY POTATOES.
No farmer likes to plant scabby
potatoes, because of the danger that
the fungus will reproduce itself in the
new crop, but some who have tried it
report crops of bright, clean potatoes
from scabby seed. This has satisfied
them that worms, insects or some
other cause than fungus produces the
scabby appearance. But if protatoes
are properly kept during winter, the
fungus growth many die out and be-
come incapable of propagation. The
success with scabby potato seed may be
due to the fact that the scab entirely
destroys some eyes, leaving those
which remain to use the entire sub
stance of the potato. This suggests
that it is undoubtedly a good plan to
dig out all but two or three vigorous
eyes before planting the seed. 1t ref
quires more potatoes to plant an acrf
by this method {; but the increased
crop more than warrants the extra
expense.
THE BEs eel FOR PROPAGATION
N~urserymen are we'll aware that
seeds of the best and choicest apples
are not best for planting. All that is
wanted is strong, vigorous stock, ahd
this is best secured by planting sedds
of the small inferior varieties, too popr
for anything except making cider.
These are generally used not alone, be-
cause they are easiest to get, but beA
cause they are the best. If we wished
fruit from these seedlings only, seeds
from the best favored varieties would
be planted but as the propagation in
variably gratis these, then the kind Of
fruit the seedlings might bear is i'm
material. The chief drawback to this
method of getting trees is that it gives
little opportunity for valuable chance
seedlings which used sometimes to be
obtained. Perhaps, however, it is as
well that improved varieties of fruits
should be bred, for by selecting seeds
from the choicest kinds, and by cross
fertilization, much Of improved stock
is bred. This will make two kinds of
seeds, each best for it's respective pur-
pose, one including the great bulk OF
seeds from inferior fruit for producing
and the other the carefully
selected few seeds for the amateur and
specialist seeking new varieties.
The pigs usefulness as a mixer,
turner and finer Of the manure heap
need only be alluded to. There seems
to be a value given to manure worked
over by pigs which neither the theory
Of the philosopher nor the crucible of
the chemist can account for. Yet it
is positively there.
There is abundant scope for the ex-
ercise of a vigorous intellect in the
management of the affairs of
the farm. The man who knows the
most practically about the soils, the
crops and the necessary conditions for